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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24461839">The World Beyond</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/AuthorReinvented/pseuds/AuthorReinvented'>AuthorReinvented</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Hetalia: Axis Powers</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Cute, Magic, Other, Trolls, another world - Freeform, child new Zealand, lamb - Freeform</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 07:42:35</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,237</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24461839</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/AuthorReinvented/pseuds/AuthorReinvented</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>There's a secret door in England's basement that leads to a magical other world.</p><p>When Child!New Zealand slips through that door, will he be able to return? Or will he be lost forever?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. A World Beyond</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>There is a secret door in the basement of England's house, a door that only one person knows about. It leads to a fantastical fairyland that can't logically exist, full of lush green hills, tall and leafy trees, and bubbling streams and creeks. In this place, there are a lot of things that don't exist, beings from myths and fairy tails. There are creatures like horses, though some have wings, some have spiraling horns. There are fairies and brownies and green rabbits with wings that bound through the air. There are trolls even, farther in, closer to the foot of the cold mountains, and perhaps, up higher, even greater things.</p><p> </p><p>All of this is a secret to the inhabitants of the house, a door that's kept locked, that will only open to others when it wants to. This door is hidden away behind a dusty trapesty decorated with snowy pine trees, a single lampost, and far in the background, a golden lion. But even this tapestry is in the very back of the room, and the door down to the basement is out of bounds to the colonies, and kept locked. Except for one day, when it wasn't. One day, when England forgot to lock the door behind him in a rush to retrieve the burning cake from the oven. A day when all his littlest colonies were playing a game of hide and seek. </p><p> </p><p>One colony, old enough to know better, young enough to not care, found the door open and slipped silently down the stairs, almost forgetting the game in his eagerness to explore the forbidden territory. England's basement is dark, and full of suspicious cauldrons and shelves of strange liquids, but all of England's colonies were used to the strange things that resulted from England's cooking, so it was that the little colony avoided potential danger and walked right by the strange glowing liquids.</p><p> </p><p>He stopped and studied the trapesty on the wall, eyes round at the golden lion, almost swearing it was looking at him. Then a noise from upstairs and he quickly lifted the cloth, meaning to hide behind it, when he saw the door. It was ornate, but not overly so, with intricate designs of butterflies and birds and vines. He put a hand to the door wonderingly, and even though there was no knob, the door swung open. The little boy tumbled into the world of fresh and green, and breathed the fresh air in deeply. To him, the air felt right, not the city air he was now used too, but the freshness of the land he once lived in.</p><p> </p><p>He took one more step in, not noticing the door softly close behind him, and it was then that he saw the fairy for the first time. It wasn't the type he was used to seeing; delicate and butterfly winged, but sturdier, with wings like a sparrow. She whistled in alarm at the sight of him, but didn't run away. She swept a little above him to watch him. The boy didn't mind. He could hear the bubbling of the creak nearby, and set off to find it, having long forgotten the world behind that door. It was while he was playing in the creak that he saw the brownie for first time, an impish grin on his face as he stood on the bank.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Beyond the door</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Hello." The colony greeted, and the brownie only smirked larger. "Hello." It returned, holding out its hand. "May I have your name?" Another little boy might have fallen for it, may have mistakenly given up his name to the mischievous Fae, but not England's colony. All of them had been raised with warnings about Fae, what to do, what not to do. "Listen," England would instruct them sometimes, suddenly turning serious in the garden. "You must never give a Faerie or any magical creature your name." His serious tone would hold all the colonies spellbound as he continued, "Names have great power."</p><p>So it was that the boy didn't give the brownie his name. "Why do you want my name?" He asked, part warily and part from pure curiosity - this was an answer England had refused to give. The brownies sly grin melted into a innocently sweet smile as he realized this child was smarter than it had originally thought. "Why only so I know what to call you!" He offered cheerily, and if the boy hadn't seen him smirking moments before, he might have believed the words. "Oh." He considered this. "Then you can call me zee. That's what my siblings call me." </p><p>The brownies' eyes darkened as he realized his own words had been used against him. This child that looked so innocent and naïve  had outsmarted him, and had not "given" the Fae his name. In fact, the name he had given was not his real name at all. For the first time the brownie studied the child. It was hard to tell whether the child was a boy or a girl, and the green eyes remained calm as the brownie studied him, and although the child looked innocent and slightly spaced out, the edges of his lips were turned up and the brownie couldn't shake the feeling the boy was studying him too. </p><p>"and what's your name?"  The child demanded, staring the brownie in its dark eyes. The brownie smirked. Two could play at this game. "You can call me whatever you want." He offered, curious to what to boy would pick. The boy hesitated, considering. He chose a name he heard his guardian murmur once or twice while he read by the fireplace at night. "Then, Malcolm!" The brownie flinched. "No, not that name. A different one." The tone was demanding and sharp, and the boy blinked slowly at him, not missing the sudden aggravation. "Then I'll call you 'Ari' ."  </p><p>There was a meaning in that name, even as carelessly as it was given, and the Fae tucked it away. All names have power, after all. This was the start of the little boy's adventures. It was the brownie who led the boy fur her into the world of lush greens and clear brooks, and the brownie who tried to abandon the boy once they were far enough in. It wasn't an action of malice, but more of an impulse. Fairies are mischievous creatures, and the brownies intention only went as far as a prank. For the child, it could have meant the end.</p>
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<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Beyond the creek</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The brownie was gone when the boy looked up. "Ari?" He called, questioning. There was no answer. This was concerning for the child, because he had no idea which way he had come from when the brownie led him here, or how to get back. He was far enough from the creek that he couldn't hear its bubbling anymore. He had always been a calmer type of child, so rather than panicking, he sat down calmly to consider his choices. </p><p>After some considering, he decided he would find a forrest fairy, as there was usually a couple visiting England at his home, and they were usually friendly and less mischievous. It didn't take him long to find one, dancing in and out of the leaves of birch tree. "excuse me" He called up to it, and the fairy froze, then twisted to see him with wide eyes. "could you help me find the creek?" He asked as politely as he could, manners having been taught to him strictly by England. For a moment, it seemed the fairy might leave, zipping away into he trees, and tge child would be left all alone again.</p><p>Then, hesitantly, she realised a delicate arm and pointed, chiming something in a language the little colony didn't know, before flying away. The child walked in the direction she had pointed, but he seemed to have been walking quite a long time without reaching the creak, and he wondered if perhaps he hadn't been walking straight at all, but instead in circles. It was hear that he heard the trolls for the first time, and heard the desperate cries of a sheep. The child had always loved sheep, with their coarse wool and soft eyes, and he moved on a conscious thought to save it. He burst out of the leaves and into a clearing, and the low murmur of trolls fell silent.</p><p>There were three of them, all staring at him in a silent shock. Their dinner, roasting over the fire, was clearly what had once been the mother of the lamb shaking and bleating in fear. It wasn't until he had gathered the lamb in his arms protectively that he fully registered the trolls. He had seen faries, flashes of unicorns and sometimes the spirit of a pirate hanging around England, but never anything this large and terrifying. For the first time the boy began to feel quite afraid and wished he was back behind that magical door, safe in England's lap. One of the trolls stood up, taking a step as though to go in the child's directions, reaching its thick fingers out towards the child, and the boy flinched away, still stubbornly hugging the lamb. He felt the breath of the troll, smokey mutton and morning breath waft over him and he closed his eyes tight.</p><p>A tear leaked out of his eye. "Help!" he called out, wishing that England would appear from behind a tree, scooping him up and using his magic to scare away the trolls. But England wasn't there, and he was all alone. Then the fingers and the breath was gone, and a glossy black shoe stepped out into the clearing. </p><p>"What's going on here?"</p>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Beyond the forest</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Norway hadn't been expecting to find a child when he stepped into the world of magic. He had been expecting a quick and pleasant meeting with the trolls, to get some gossip from the forrest, and maybe even have lunch. He was walking with the oldest of the trolls, the one he called Oskar, when he heard the child's plea, high-pitched and scared. "Help!" Norway froze, and cast a look at Oskar, who looked just as confused as he. The cry came from the meeting place, punctuated by the panicked bleat of a sheep, and Norway stepped into the clearing and turned to stone at the sight.</p><p>On the edge of the clearing was a child, wrapped around a tiny lamb, barely large enough to hold the creature. The child's eyes were squeezed shut, tears leaking from his eyes. It was the thick eyebrows that drew Norway's attention first though, so similar to those of a friend of his. He wondered if England had turned himself into a child somehow, but the child's strange hair curls, face shape and hair colour were all different than England's. His thoughts were cut off as one of the younger trolls rushed to him, pleadingly, explaining that they really didn't do anything, the kid just showed up, grabbed the sheep and started crying. Norway was quick to assure the panicked troll that he believed them, knowing any normal child would have cried upon seeing such large creatures.</p><p>The child seemed to sense the change in the air and opened his tearful eyes, warily, and Norway saw he had the same green eyes as England too.  For a moment, both the boy and the man stayed frozen, then the boy spoke for the first time. "Hello." It was such a commonplace greeting in such a strange place that Norway felt the edge of his lips tilt upwards in the tiniest bit of a smile. "Hallo." He greeted, crouching down to the child's height as he had often done with Iceland when he was young. "What is your name?" Norway asked the child softly, offering the boy a hand. The child blinked, and his response was careful. "You can call me Zee."</p><p>Once again the edges of Norway's lips threatened to twitch up into a rare smile. The boy was clever, and knew better than to give out his name. "You can call me Nor." He responded evenly and the little boy took his hand, still hauling the now quiet lamb with him. The boy seemed to try to hide behind him, peeking at the trolls behind him and Norway muttered "They won't hurt you. They're my friends."  He regretted saying after of on the trolls poked him and started commenting "Friends? We're friends?" Norway ignored him. As soon as he said the word "Friends" the boy relaxed, although he still kept a tight grip on the sheep. The animal seemed to have gone into a non-responsive state, and Norway was a little concerned for it. "Can you help me go home?" The little boy asked, and everything became clear.</p><p>England's eyebrows, the child's careful answers, how he got here- He must have come through England's door! But then... Where was his guardian?</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Beyond the trolls</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Norway led the boy and the sheep away from the trolls to talk, telling them he'd be back shortly. There were a few complains about the loss of the lamb, but the oldest troll Oskar had convinced them to give it to the child, promising they could aways get another. Norway doubted it would have been possible to separate the two at this point anyways. He'd seen this reaction before, when Iceland first found his fated companion, a puffin. The boy and bird had been inseparable, and since the day they met the puffin had not aged a single day. If this boy was a nation, or would soon become one like Norway suspected, it would likely be the same case between the two.</p><p>"Where's your guardian?" he asked the boy, and for a moment the boy just stared at him, and he wondered if he'd been wrong, if it wasn't England's after all. Then the boy responded "Home."  Home? England didn't know he was here? Norway chewed his lip. He didn't know where England's door was. He considered bringing the boy back to his place and sending him back via his world, but if he wasn't careful then implications might cause England to think he had kidnapped him and the last thing he wanted was war with England. The boy provided an answer for his problem.</p><p>"Can you help me find the creek?" He piped. Norway blinked. "The creek?" There should be one not too far away, if he remembered right. The boy nodded.  "I asked the fairy but I got lost."  Norway considered this. "If I help you find the creek can you get home?" The boy nodded enthusiastically. "Alright." Norway stood up and took the child's hand. The child's other hand rested on the back of the sheep. "This way." The child obediently followed. It didn't take long to reach the creek, and the child brightened immediately once they reached it. "I can find my way home from here!" He said brightly, letting go of Norway's hand.</p><p>Norway frowned. "Are you sure?" He nodded enthusiastically, and the lamb, seeming to catch his excitement, bleated and kicked up its heels. "If you can't get back, come find the trolls again and we will take you home." Norway warned. "Thanks Nor!" the child said with a beam. Norway almost let him go like that, but remered something at the last moment. "Zee," He called after the boy in a stern tone and the boy hesitated turning around. "Don't ever come back here without permission from your guardian." Norway warned. "It's dangerous."  Zee froze, and the look that crossed his showed Norway he understood. "OK." He promised solomnly, then whirled and ran off downstream, one hand on the Lamb's back.</p><p>Norway watched the boy go for quite a while, before returning to his meeting with the trolls.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Beyond the world of magic</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It didn't take long for the little colony to retrace his steps, and as he got closer to the door, he heard a familiar voice, scolding and worried. "And you left him?" England's voice was high-pitched with worry.  There was a murmur that the child recognized as the brownie, Ari. "I didn't know he was one of yours." The brownie muttered a little petulantly. England wasn't in the mood for excuses. "If anything happens to that child, so help me if I don't seal you away in a rotten stump!"  He snapped in return. </p><p> Any further threats were cut off by a loud cry of "England!" and the sudden weight of a colony attaching himself to England's leg, while a sheep danced in circles around the pair. The brownie looked very relieved and took advantage of the situation to slink away, but neither England nor the boy noticed. England dropped to his knees, gathering his colony into his arm, holding him as though to never let go, and the child could feel England's heart racing as his guardian tried to calm himself down. All too soon the hug turned into scolding. "Don't you <em>ever</em> do that again!" England scolded in a thick voice.</p><p>The colony wilted a little, but didn't argue or make excuses, even when his desert privileges for the week were revoked, keeping one hand twined in the Sheep's white wool. England's scolding continued all the way out of the magical world, into the basement(Which England made sure to lock), and to the door of the colony's room, where he was then promptly told to stay until supper. England finally came to the end of his tirade, and once again gathered the child into his arms, breathing another sigh of relief. "You scared me." He admitting softly, then just as quickly he let the boy go, brushing wrinkles from his trousers.</p><p>He started to walk away and then stop as though remember something. He half turned to see the boy and the sheep standing behind. "Am I to assume that this" a half-hearted wave towards the lamb, "Is staying with us?" The child pulled the Sheep's head to his Chest. "This is my friend." England sighed. "Very well. You must take care of it yourself." Then he strode off, muttering something about "Canada and his bear, now this child with his sheep, what next? Australia and a snake?"  While shaking his head exasperatedly.</p><p>Later, he would get a more detailed story from the child about the experience, and the stranger who had brought him back home, who the child only described as "a troll friend." causing England to mistakenly believe it was a troll that had brought the child home. It wouldn't be until years later, when the child was no logger a child but a man, no longer a colony, but a country, that he would again meet the man he had dubbed "a troll friend" in his childhood. </p><p> </p><p>"Ah, Norway!" England called out to his friend, pulling another nation with him by the arm. Norway turned to see what England needed. England pulled the young man, holding a sheep in his arms, in front of him. "This is New Zealand. He used to be one of my colonies." England turned to New Zealand. "This is Norway, a friend of mine." Norway cut him off with a wave, the tiniest bit of a smile twitching on the corner of his mouth.  "We've met before." He extended a hand to the young nation. "It's been awhile, Zee."  The young man grinned in response, shifting the sheep to shake Norway's hand. "Likewise, Nor."</p>
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